


Kiss Me

by haleyc510



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2015-12-07
Packaged: 2018-04-25 06:05:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4949539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/haleyc510/pseuds/haleyc510
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>We are at a party and- crap I just saw my ex, quick kiss me! Au that has a bit of spunk behind it</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In Which They Kiss

**Author's Note:**

> I acknowledge that there are some aspects of this chapter that are not acceptable behavior on the part of Carmilla, but the issue is addressed and will not be a recurring thing. Other than that, please enjoy!

Laura hated parties. Hated them. Loud music. Loud people. Drunk people. Loud drunk people. That, plus the obscene amount of frat boys who couldn't take the flannel tied around her waist as a hint, were even more exhausting. But Danny had wanted to come, and she was not going to let Danny think she was a square.

Unfortunately she had lost a certain red headed giant in the crowd, so Laura was awkwardly huddled in a corner.

Suddenly, Laura felt herself being pulled by the waist into extremely close proximity to a, wow, very attractive girl. 

"Kiss me." The girl's voice was raspy and rushed, her eyes frantic

"What? I don't even know your name!" Laura tried to make her voice convicting, but the lack of personal space made such things extremely difficult. The girl didn't reply, only pushed her mouth against Laura's insistently.

Laura reeled back, shocked by the sudden contact, but the girl kissed her again. Laura felt the girl's lips moving, trying to deepen the kiss. Laura obliged, tangling her hands in the girl’s hair and tugged. 

The girl groaned deep in her chest and Laura felt something inside her tighten. She felt the girl start to pull away, but not without tugging on her bottom lip with her teeth. Laura exhaled, and took a deep breath before pulling the girl back in. 

The girl took the lead and turned them, pushing Laura up against the wall with a thud. Laura gasped at the sudden movement and kissed back harder. The girl's hands moved from Laura's waist to her hair, gripping tightly. Laura groaned, her hands falling from the long, dark locks, to trail around the girl's waist. Her hands settled over the taller girl's ass, and gave it a rough squeeze. 

That made the girl pull away and let out a long breath. She trailed kisses along Laura's jaw and up to the spot just below her ear which made her shiver in an oh-so-good way. 

Laura heard the raspy voice whispered again, "My name's Carmilla, by the way." 

Just as quickly as she began kissing Laura, she stopped. Pulling away from the shorter girl, she winked and left a completely dumbfounded Laura standing against the wall.

-

"I hate you. With my entire being." Carmilla growled as she knocked back a shot and glared daggers at the ginger standing across from her. The kitchen is extremely crowded, and that's saying something, because this house is huge, and the kitchen is no exception. 

"Look man, I'm sorry. I needed to get some stuff off my mind and you usually like high class alcohol and mind numbing bass." LaF shrugged as they swirled the alcohol in their glass. 

"No, it's not the party. It's the people here." Carmilla sighed, and slumped onto the counter, picking her nails all the while

"The frat boys are always here, figured they'd be white noise by now." LaF took a particularly large gulp and grimaced

"Not the frat boys, gingersnap." Her voice was laced with resignation and she sighed rather loudly, "She's here."

LaF looked briefly confused before their eyes widened, "You mean, Ell?"

Carmilla remained silent, the answer to LaF's question all too obvious. 

"What are you gonna do? Let that bitch ruin your night? Fuck that. Go find a cute girl."

Carmilla looked up to see the girl she had aggressively made out with earlier that night, with zero warning at that, storming over. Fear shot through her at the fiery rage she saw on the smaller girl's face, but she set her jaw and waited.

"Looks like the girl found me, carrot top."

LaF glanced over and nearly spit out their drink at the sight of Laura.

"What trouble did you manage to get yourself into here, frosch?" LaF mumbled over their cup when Laura made it to where they were both standing

"Well aren't you positively fuming, cupcake?" Carmilla drawled sarcastically as she reached up to push a piece of hair behind Laura's ear, which temporarily distracted the girl. But she quickly snapped out of the spell and slapped Carmilla's hand away.

"I'm fuming for very good reason, Carmilla. Or whatever your name is." Carmilla could tell that the girl was being serious, and was very angry, but all of that rage in such a tiny body was, well, cute, "And I have one, by the way."

"A name? I would probably forget it the moment it came out of your tiny little mouth." Carmilla gave a signature smirk not expecting Laura to have a comeback

"You didn't seem to mind my tiny little mouth when you had me up against that wall earlier." Laura's face scrunched up in a sarcastic smile and Carmilla mirrored her, a bit too stunned to say anything. 

Until a grossly familiar voice broke the tension,

"Ooh, Carm, a little lover's spat?" Ell's sugary sweet voice left Carmilla's mouth dry and her fists immediately clenched

Laura answered at the same time as Carmilla, but the answers were very different.

"We aren't lovers!"

"It's not a spat, just a disagreement.”

But then it turned into an overlapping argument,

"A disagreement? You assaulted me!"

"Assaulting? It was pretty reciprocated, if my memory serves correctly."

"Whether it was reciprocated is beside the point!" 

"Cupcake keep the volume down a little please."

"Oh, now you want me to-"

Ell cut Laura off, "While I'd love to continue to hear this lovely story unfold, I have to go. It's nice that you finally met someone again Carm, I was beginning to wonder if I ruined it for you."

Ell's face was pleasant, but in a way you knew she meant nothing but trouble.

"You didn't ruin anything for me, I just figured that something better might just be waiting around the corner." Carmilla tossed a pleading glance at Laura before wrapping her arm possessively around the shorter girl's waist, far too low to be considered friendly.

"Well, I'm glad for you Carm." Ell tossed a rude look over her shoulder before adding slowly, "Actually, how would you two like to come to dinner with Carter and I? It would be great to catch up, and you two look like you are both so much fun to go out with."

Carmilla tightened her grip on Laura's side when she said politely, "That sounds great! Text me the details, okay?" 

Ell flashed another sweet smile and walked away- no- strutted away.

Laura immediately shoved Carmilla off of her, her eyes closed, and inhaling a deep breath. 

"Who the hell do you think you are?!"

"Look, cupcake-"

"Laura."

"Gesundheit. Look, cupcake, Ell was the worst girlfriend I ever had and she's made my life hell for the past 6 months and I saw her at this party, then I saw you all by your lonesome and I panicked."

"And signed me up for a double date?"

"I-"

"Panicked. I get it." Laura sighed again. She was doing that a lot tonight.

"So will you do it? It'll only be one date, and I'll pay."

Laura paused for a moment. Pros, free food, excuse to get out of the dorm, maybe get her mind off Danny, Carmilla was really, really hot. Cons, Ell seemed really rude and spending an evening in her presence did not seem too fun, Carmilla was also unpleasant to be around, and pretending to date her didn’t exactly scream ‘having a great time’. The pros outweighed the cons. Just barely.

"Fine."

Carmilla paused, "Wait, you'll do it?"

"Yes."

"Thank you!!" Carmilla grabbed Laura's cheeks and pulled her into a kiss before Laura jerked back, a look of pure, unadulterated rage on her face,  
“But let me make this one thing very clear.” Carmilla nodded, because the look Laura was giving her was enough to make a grown man shake, “You will not, under any circumstances, touch me again without my consent, do you understand?”

Carmilla swallowed and shook her head, “Yes, I absolutely will not touch you without your consent from this moment forward.”

LaFontaine spoke up finally, with a glassy look, "How drunk am I right now, yo."

"Pretty drunk, red. Let's get you out of here." Carmilla clapped her hand on LaF's shoulder and they began to walk away before Carmilla stopped, "Hey, can you put your number in my phone? I'll text you about the dinner okay?"

Laura finished typing her number in, and Carmilla looked at the new contact, paying close attention to each emoji Laura put next to her name. A smile smile stretched across her face at the cookie emoji.

"Do you live close by here?" Carmilla asked suddenly.

"Yeah, just down the road in the co-ed dorms." Laura answered.

"Oh, okay. Well get home safe. I would offer to walk you home but I've gotta make sure LaF here doesn't get into any trouble they can't handle."

Laura smiled, and Carmilla felt something inside her tighten at it. 

"I understand, and appreciate the sentiment. Goodnight, Carmilla."

"And goodnight to you, cupcake."


	2. In Which They Walk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla picks Laura up for their date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heres the next chapter! i forgot to put saturday in the update days list, but itll be tuesday night/wednesday morning, and saturdays!

Carmilla took in a deep breath and knocked on the door at the end of the hall, decorated with different signs, and pictures, all saying some form of "Floor Don" or "Perry". She figured if anybody knew which room was Laura's, it'd be this person.

She was reading one of the letters when the door flew open, and a head of fiery curls popped into view. Carmilla stumbled back a few steps in surprise, and Perry quickly apologized.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to scare you!" Her voice was chipper and almost unpleasantly pleasant, if that made any sense, "I'm Perry, the floor don, and you don't live here." Perry's words slowed when she didn't recognize the girl in front of her.

"Yea, I'm here to- uh- I'm here to meet Laura." Carmilla's hands were sweaty, and she rubbed her palms on her jeans trying to dry them.

"Oh! You're the girl Laura's been talking about all week! Come on, I'll take you to her room." They turned the corner and began walking down the long hallway, "Laura's very excited for tonight, so you know. She knocked on my door this morning asking me which button up she should wear." Perry laughed and Carmilla smiled politely. 

This felt oddly like talking to your date's mom while you were waiting for them to get ready. Which made no sense because this was a fake date. She was deep in thought, when Perry's voice broke the silence,

"Here it is! 307!" Perry clasped her hands in front of her and Carmilla nodded,

"Thank you." Her response was curt and Perry looked slightly hurt by it, but she didn't say anything. Perry turned and began walking back to her room and Carmilla prepared herself to knock on another door. 

Her knuckles lightly rapped on the door frame, and she heard Laura's voice from inside yell, 

"The door's open! Come in!"

Carmilla turned the knob and walked into the small dorm room. There wasn't very much light in the room, but Laura was standing in front of her computer, while she held a curling iron in her hair. Laura whipped around and damn near pulled the plug from the wall socket when she saw Carmilla.

"Carmilla! You're early! I'm almost ready, just give me a few seconds." Laura quickly tapped a few keys on her keyboard and then moved her curler to a different piece of hair. 

Carmilla smirked at the girl's obvious scatterbrained-ness and flopped onto the unmade bed that the deemed Laura's. Laura finished her hair, and was in the process of doing something in the bathroom when she spoke again,

"You could have just texted me that you were here, it would have saved you some trouble of finding my room." 

Carmilla shrugged her shoulders, "Eh, Pippy Longstocking was a lot of help."

Laura quickly appeared at the door of the bathroom, "You talked to Perry!?" 

Her eyes were wide with panic and her whole body had tensed.

"Yes, I talked to the ginger. She walked me up here, and believe it or not, she's a pretty good conversation partner. Granted the subject was worthwhile." Carmilla winked at Laura who was still as nervous looking as ever.

"Did she, uh, talk to you about me? Or anything I'd said to her?" Laura nervously chewed on her bottom lip, and Carmilla smirked

"She only told me how excited you were for our date and how you panicked over which button up to wear this morning." Her voice was sarcastic, but something told Laura that it wasn't in bad taste, "And looking at you now, you decided against wearing a button up at all."

"Excuse me for wanting to make you look like hot stuff in front of your ex." Carmilla was surprised at that, and Laura continued, leaning on the door frame, "She seemed like a raging bad person from the brief time I spent in her presence, and I want to make it look like you got the better end of the deal."

This time, Laura shrugged her shoulders, and walked out of the bathroom. She reached over to her desk and grabbed her bag.

"Are you ready?" Laura grinned at the girl who was still lounging on her bed. Carmilla simply raised an eyebrow when she lifted her eyes to look Laura.

The girl was wearing a dress about knee length, that was literally plaid. She had on a pair of tights beneath it, and a small black belt around her waist, but still. 

"Cupcake you look like a picnic blanket." Carmilla deadpanned

Laura looked down at her dress, "I thought it was cute." She bore a small frown and that made Carmilla crack a small smile,

"There's a reason you got it at the consignment shop, cutie." Carmilla lazily got up from the bed and stretched, "But whatever, we've gotta roll, or else we'll be late."

Laura felt a flash of anger course through her. She had no idea why she thought that Carmilla would be any less infuriating today then she had been at the party, but she had thought so. And unfortunately, she was wrong.

-

Carmilla walked with her hands in her pockets, and her head down. Laura walked at a much quicker pace to match Carmilla's stride. The silence was awkward, and Laura really didn't know why. Maybe some conversation would bring Carmilla out of her funk. Just not something stupid.

"Do you really not like the dress?" Laura blurted out, and then wanted to bang her head onto the nearest brick wall several times,

Carmilla sighed, "I don't mind the dress, cutie. I'm just, I guess you could say, apprehensive, about meeting Ell today."

Laura felt a small pull in her chest. She knew the feeling of not wanting to see your ex again, like, ever. And being forced into a double date with a total stranger, your ex girlfriend, and their new significant other, doesn't seem like the ideal way to spend an afternoon.

Laura's face pulled into a thoughtful look before answering Carmilla, "So you're nervous about meeting your, no offense, but extremely rude, ex. That's pretty understandable." Laura mustered up a small burst of confidence, and looped her arm inside Carmilla's pulling herself into Carmilla's side, "It's perfectly normal for you to feel kind of awkward about the situation, seeing as how this whole thing is kind of a ruse. But that's no reason to be all broody, now is it?" 

Laura's tone was joking, and Carmilla couldn't help but smile at the girl who was trying her hardest to cheer her up. 

"I'm not being broody. I'm just, I dunno, being quiet."

"You're being broody, Miss Carmilla. And I demand that you stop it right now." 

Carmilla raised an eyebrow and turned to Laura, "Oh, making demands already sweetheart? It's only the first date, and I haven't even bought you dinner."

Laura rolled her eyes, but she was secretly happy that she'd managed to snap Carmilla out of whatever mood she'd been in. Which was weird, because she shouldn't really care what Carmilla feels, because this was just a one time thing. At least she wasn't being an insufferable jerk like normal.

"We're almost there, cupcake, so it's time to start acting like you actually like me." Carmilla pulled her hand out of her pocket and brought her arm around the space of Laura’s back, "Is this okay?" Carmilla asked before resting her arm on the girl’s waist.

"Yea, it's okay. Thank you for asking." Laura turned her face and kissed Carmilla's cheek

Carmilla blushed ever so slightly before asking, "What was that for?"

"I've got to pretend like I like you, right?"

Carmilla felt something inside her sink, and it wasn't because she was going to eat a meal with her ex girlfriend.


	3. In Which They Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And the date with Ell commences

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope u guys enjoy more tiny ball of rage hollis

"So, Carmilla, how did you meet Laura?" Ell took a sip of her drink before setting it down again,

Carmilla was about to speak whenever Laura put her hand on Carmilla's forearm to stop her, 

"Do you want me to take this one, babe?" Laura was looking at Carmilla with a sweet smile, and Carmilla sighed with relief

"Yea, if you want to." She returned Laura's smile and sat back in her chair, almost excited to hear how her and Laura's fake relationship began.

"Well, it was at the end of freshman orientation, and there was a mixer at the quad to meet new people, you know? And I'm not quite sure why Carm was there, but she was," Laura laughed at the fake memory and Carmilla was trying not to be offended that Laura took it upon herself to give Carmilla a nickname, "And I was mostly there because my Lit TA said she was going to be there with her Summer Society sisters and, to be honest, I was nursing a pretty bad crush."

Carmilla moved her hand to tangle her fingers with Laura's on top of the table, who paused briefly at the contact. Their eyes met and Laura squeezed Carmilla's hand slightly to let her know that she was alright.

"And near the end of the night, there was a dancing game where you had to find a partner. Then, people would go around and remove one partner from the couple, and if you didn't find someone else before time ran out, you lost. And I'm pretty sure Carm would have been running for the hills, but she somehow got trapped on the dance floor. 

"And then, me and all of my finesse, trying to get to the closest person I could find, pretty much body slammed her into the ground." Laura could barely keep her laughter under control at this point, and Carmilla found it extremely endearing, "And I felt so bad after doing it, I offered to get her a drink, and we kinda just went from there."

Carter spoke up from across the table, 

"That is so cute. Ell and I just met online, nothing really special there." Carter reached over and pushed a piece of blonde hair behind Ell's ear, "But we just clicked. It was almost magic." 

A smug grin played across Ell's lips and Carmilla gripped Laura's hand all the tighter. Laura glanced at Carmilla, the look, becoming an all too familiar one between them, asked if Carmilla was okay. 

"Hey babe? I'm going to use the restroom, could you order for me when the waiter comes?" Carmilla stood and almost leaned in to kiss Laura's cheek but pulled away before her intent was too obvious.

"Okay, yea. I've got you." Laura smiled at Carmilla as she stood and she could have sworn that she was going to kiss her. It was probably her imagination, Carmilla wouldn't want to kiss her. That would be a little too much for this fake date.

After Carmilla was out of earshot, Ell spoke directly to Laura,

"So tell me, Laura, right? Are you and Carmilla really dating?" Laura almost reeled,

"What kind of question is that?" Laura was extremely nervous and trying immensely hard to keep her cool

"Carmilla isn't a very polite person. But the entire time you two have been sitting here it's been hand holding, or the pleasantries between you to take the questions, or calling you babe and asking you to order for her when she stood up. Even excusing herself! I think there's something fishy going on."

Ell narrowed her eyes at Laura who stuttered before replying,

"I don't know what you're talking about." Laura thought back to the night that Carmilla had kissed her at the party. She hadn't been particularly polite then. And in her room telling her that her dress looked like a picnic blanket, that was rude. But the way it came off with Carmilla wasn't that she was intentionally being rude, just apathetic towards other people's feelings. 

But then again, Carmilla explicitly asked Laura's permission before touching her to make sure that she was comfortable. So was she really apathetic? Or maybe it was just a front? 

"I dated her for almost a year, and she was never courteous in the slightest." Ell was still pushing, and Laura was beginning to get angry, "Have you ever thought that she might be covering up for something? Like maybe an affair? All that chivalry might be a front."

"Well, maybe she was saving it for someone who deserved it." Laura set down the chip in her hand, "And your lovely girlfriend here said that you met online. I think it was you who said something about 'ruining it' for her?"

Laura saw Carmilla nearing the table out of the corner of her eye. Her heart started to beat faster because she had just made a huge mess and had about 15 seconds to clean it up.

"Carmilla's been in a dry spell worse than the Sahara Desert since I dumped her sorry ass 6 months ago. That's why I know that this is a charade, and that I can't believe that she could sink as low to get a fake girlfriend. It's pathetic really."

Laura stood up, her fists balled at her sides,

"You know what? I'm done here. Carter, it was great meeting you, and with all due respect, find some standards that include more than a pretty face." 

"Hey, is everything okay?" Laura whipped her head over to meet Carmilla's dark eyes

"No, it isn't Carmilla. I'm ready to go." Laura grabbed her bag from the table, and stormed out of the restaurant

"Hey, wait!" Carmilla flashed a menacing look at Ell who wore an innocent look, "Fuck you, Ell. It was my mistake to think you'd changed."

Carmilla ran after Laura, who was already about halfway down the block.

-

"Hey! Cupcake, wait!" Carmilla was panting trying to catch up with Laura's quick pace

Laura eventually stopped moving, and allowed Carmilla to catch up with her. She didn't really know why she was so upset. Ell was being really rude, but she had expected that. But she was trashing Carmilla in almost the worst way possible, and that had made her so angry. 

"Hey, what happened back there to make you storm off like that?" Laura's fists were still clenched tightly at her sides and she was seething with rage

"She was calling you a cheater, and calling you pathetic, and she was just being so rude!" Carmilla sighed and reached a hand up to touch Laura, but hesitated, until she saw Laura nod. Carmilla softly grasped Laura's cheek, and pushed a lock of hair behind the girl's ear. Carmilla swore she felt Laura lean into the touch.

They stood in silence for a moment, Carmilla giving Laura the chance to compose herself, 

"I'm sorry, but I just got so angry. I didn't understand how anybody could be so rude without reason." Laura sighed and she saw the corner of Carmilla's lips curve into a small smile

"That's Ell for you. I'm very happy I jumped ship when I did. And I thank you for defending my honor, cupcake." 

"Laura." 

Carmilla furrowed her brow, "What?"

"My name, it's Laura." Laura laughed softly

"Oh, is it? It doesn't fit very well." Carmilla's face was blank and Laura slapped her playfully on the shoulder

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, I don't know, when I hear 'Laura' I think of someone tall, which you definitely are not."

Before Laura could retaliate, somebody interrupted their exchange

"Hey, I'm sorry to interrupt, but are you two a couple?" 

Carmilla rolled her eyes and said, "Screw off, freshmeat."

"No, I'm sorry, I realize that it's somewhat invasive, and I apologize. But I'm doing an piece on LGBT student life at Silas for the paper, and I'm looking for one more couple, and I think that you guys would be perfect."

Before Carmilla could tell them to screw off again, Laura looped her arm around Carmilla and smiled,

"We'd be happy to do it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I totally forgot to tell you guys in the last few chapters, but you can find me on tumblr @haley2daletter


	4. In Which They Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla and Laura make relationships landmarks

"Okay so, I'm going to interview you both, together and separately, and also, if you two consent, I would like to do a photoshoot around campus." Carmilla and Laura were both sitting in the student's office at the newspaper.

Carmilla wore her signature frown and was leaning back in her chair, while Laura was actively engaged in what they were saying. 

"If you have any questions, you can email me at jayden.l@student.silasu.org, or give me a call at 867-5309." They stood up and shook Laura's hand and offered it to Carmilla, who might as well have already left.

-

"Carm doesn't this sound fun! I mean we get to do a photoshoot and and interview and stuff!" Laura was almost giddy with excitement, and Carmilla gave her a confused look, "What's wrong?"

Carmilla sighed, "Creampuff, I think you're forgetting one tiny detail." 

"Well what is it? I mean this whole thing kinda works out." Laura shrugged her shoulders, and kept walking

"Laura. We are not actually dating!" Carmilla almost shouted, trying not to draw attention to themselves, "Don't you think that there might be a chance that we get caught lying?" 

"It'll be fine. Nobody but us knows that this isn't 100% truthful."

Carmilla sighed, then started walking in the opposite direction, "If we're gonna do this, we're gonna need to plan. So come on."

"Wait, where are we going?" Laura jogged to catch Carnilla

"We are going to my apartment." Laura furrowed her brow at Carmilla, "We've got planning to do."

-

Carmilla's apartment was shockingly cosy. Her couch was old and had probably seen better days, but it was like the couch at your grandma's house. There were more clothes strewn about the living room than was probably normal, and there were eerie abstract paintings lining the walls, but it was all very Carmilla. 

"So, what kind of planning are we talking here?" Laura was leaning against the back if the couch, and Carmilla disappeared down a hallway and it sounded like she was rooting through a closet of sorts.

"Well, we've got several months of relationship to make up. And if we're going to be interviewed, we've really gotta know our stuff." Carmilla was shouting and then she said triumphantly, "Yes! I knew LaF left it here one day, I just never thought I'd actually use it."

The girl came into the room carrying a white board and easel to write on it with. She quickly assembled it and then popped the top of a dry erase marker off, 

"You ready to ride, cupcake?"

"Yea, let's go." Carmilla turned around to write, 

"Okay, so you said we met at the end of fish camp, right?" 

"Yep, that was, August 12th, I think."

"Okay, so right now it is the 17th of October. When did we make it official?" Carmilla scribbled the dates on the board

"Two weeks maybe?" Laura shrugged 

"Oh, you had to get me all to yourself quick?" Carmilla smirked

"No, just- whatever. 2 weeks. August 26th." 

Carmilla wrote it down on the board with a heart by the date. 

"Okay, so first date. What did we do?"

"Bowling." 

Carmilla rolled her eyes, "Bowling? Really?" 

"The alley downtown has a college night, $2 a game and $2 beer pitchers." Laura said matter-of-factly

"Oh, so I'm a cheap date?" Carmilla was messing with Laura, but Laura still fought back

"Well, what would you have done for our first date?" 

Carmilla capped the marker, and walked over to Laura, "Well, I would have texted you to come down from your dorm, and I would have met you with flowers or something of the sort. Maybe lilies, you seem like a lily kinda gal."

Laura smiled at the thought of Carmilla waiting for her with flowers, and then remembered to listen to how her and Carmilla's first date unfolded,

"We would have gone to dinner, somewhere kind of nice, but not too much because you weren't dressed for super fancy. And we had a couple of drinks, and you probably couldn't stop laughing because you're giggly enough as it is, I can only imagine you drunk."

Laura slapped Carmilla's hand, "You're so rude!"

Carmilla laughed, "But, before going home, I'md take you to the roof of the Lustig building, because you can see the stars from there like nobody's business."

Laura was sitting on the back of the couch right now, and Carmilla was leaning beside her. The small smile on Carmilla's face was one that Laura couldn't really put a pin on. It was definitely genuine, but it was almost wistful? 

"So you'd get me drunk and then take me to an abandoned building?" Laura moved her hand, and twirled a piece of Carmilla's hair in her fingers

"Well, when you put it that way, it sounds shady." Both Carmilla and Laura laughed quietly and a comfortable silence followed. 

Laura never noticed until today how gorgeous Carmilla's eyes were. They were brown, but little flecks of gold were hidden like small gems, and Laura wanted to count them all.

Carmilla broke the quiet when she cleared her throat, "Well, as much as I'd like to sit here and gaze meaningfully into your eyes, cupcake, we've got work to do."

Laura jerked herself upright when she realized they'd leaned so close to one another, "Yea, totally. So what's next?"

"Okay, next on the list is.." She pulled her phone out and went to whatever she had kept the list in, "Our first time."

"Our what!?" Laura nearly choked on the air she was breathing

"When did we consummate our relationship? You know, when did we-"

"I know what you meant. But, why is that relevant? I mean, it's not like the interviewer is going to ask about our sex life." Laura was trying extremely hard to get the words out over her burning red cheeks. For some reason, the thought of herself sleeping with Carmilla was causing an uncontrollable blush.

"This exercise is to mainly build the story for us. The more landmarks we create in the fake relationship, the more in tune with each other we will be." Carmilla picked up the marker again, "So when did we do it?"

"I have no idea." Laura was still flustered, and Carmilla's cool confidence in reference to their imaginary sex was making her feel some type of way.

"Well, how did it happen with you?" Carmilla crossed her arms

"Wait, you mean my first time?" Laura could feel herself getting even redder, if that was possible

"Yes, cutie, granted you're not a virgin." Laura broke eye contact with Carmilla, who's jaw dropped slightly, "Wait, you aren't a virgin, are you?"

Laura shrugged her shoulders, "I mean, I guess technically I'm a virgin. I've never gone anywhere past like, grinding before. Our shirts were off, if that counts." Laura met Carmilla's eyes, and her expression was unreadable again,

"Hey, there's nothing to be ashamed of, Laura. Are you uncomfortable talking about this?" Carmilla dropped the marker and moved closer to Laura, but keeping her distance respectful

"No, I'm just- you're really attractive Carmilla. Like, really really attractive, and you talking about sleeping with me is just, I don't know, flustering."

Carmilla's lips twitched into a smile, maybe the first real smile she'd ever seen the girl make.

"I'm very sorry that I am so attractive, I'll try to tone it down." Carmilla extended her hand and locked eyes with Laura's, who smiled and nodded. Carmilla grabbed Laura's hand and ran her thumb gently over the back of her knuckles. 

The sensation was comforting and Laura found it difficult to be flustered when Carmilla was being so damn considerate. Or remember she didn't actually like Carmilla, for that matter.

But how sure was she of that second part?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and you guys can always find me on tumblr @ haley2daletter.tumblr.com


	5. In Which They Kiss (Again)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this was actually chapter 5 & 6 but i couldnt leave it just at 5

"Laura, I need you to move your hand, can you bring it down just a bit?" It had been like this mostly the whole time, small adjustments. Every once in awhile, he would change the pose. 

Laura cleared her throat before speaking, 

"Hey, Jayden. This is cool and all, but maybe you would get better shots if they were candid? I mean, this relationship isn't like, falsified poses and stuff."

Carmilla almost laughed at the statement, but then chimed in, "Yea, maybe we could walk around or something, not just stand here draped over one another." 

Jayden stood up, "That's a great idea! I don't know why I didn't think of that. And you guys are gonna be my headliners, if that's alright."

Laura looked confused, "Headliners?" 

"Well, it's an online article, so the first picture will be of you guys, the majority of the quotes from you, and such. I just find your chemistry so, I don't know how to put it, but it's very refreshing." They unzipped their camera bag to switch the lens, "So, I guess you guys can just walk or do whatever, and I'll follow you."

"That doesn't sound creepy at all, newspaper." Carmilla lazily removed herself from the short wall she had been sitting on and held her hand out to Laura, "Ready to ride, creampuff?"

Laura smiled and grabbed Carmilla's hand and they took off walking. Laura was secretly glad that Carmilla was going through this with minimal complaining. She even seemed into it, in a way. 

The hand holding, for one, though she could chalk that up to pretending. They had been in fairly intimate positions for the posed pictures, and she had been very compliant when Jay moved her or Laura in the slightest bits. She hadn't called Laura a spaz or anything of the sort when she tripped over a loose flagstone in the courtyard. She actually laughed, in a good natured way, and Laura smiled remembering how happy Carmilla seemed. 

Carmilla brought Laura's hand to her lips and kissed the back of it, "You seem distracted, is everything okay?"

Laura blushed at the contact, "Uh, yea. I just never expected myself to be in a situation like this." Laura forced a laugh, "I mean, have you?"

Carmilla raised an eyebrow, "Truth or lie?"

Laura rolled her eyes, "Would I have asked if I wanted a lie?"

Carmilla laughed, "Fair enough. But yes, I have pretended to be in a relationship with a girl before."

"Really? Why did you have to pretend to be in a relationship?" 

"Well, a good friend of mine was getting tired of her parents trying to set her up with people from church, and she had been meaning to come out for a while, and she asked me to help her kill two birds with one stone." Carmilla shrugged

"So you pretended to be your friend's girlfriend?" Laura was smiling now

"Absolutely. Though, I never expected it to happen again." Carmilla bumped her shoulder gently into Laura's who smiled

Laura lifted their joined hands and moved them so that she was still holding Carmilla's hand, but the taller girl's arm was wrapped around Laura's shoulder. carmilla raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything when she felt Laura settle into her side, her head resting on Carmilla's shoulder.

The girls walked in silence for a bit before they heard music coming from around the corner. Laura lifted her head and looked around.

Carmilla asked her, "Everything alright?"

Laura didn't respond for a second, "Oh, yea. I just really love this song."

"I should have known that you were an Ed Sheeran kinda gal."

"Is that all I am to you? Some kinda gal?"

"Hmm, maybe more of a pal." Carmilla laughed when Laura jokingly slapped her hand.

Soon, they reached the source of the music. It was some guy with his guitar and Laura was digging in her wallet for a couple of ones before dropping them in his guitar case.

"Carm, do you want to dance?" Laura was standing holding out her hand and before Carmilla took it she raised a finger to Laura

"One condition," Laura raised an eyebrow in response, "I lead."

Laura laughed for what seemed like the millionth time that day, and she grabbed Carmilla's hand. The two comfortably fell into an easy waltz, and Carmilla stepped back to spin Laura around, both of them smiling all the while. 

When Carmilla pulled Laura back in from the spin, she let go of Carmilla's hand and draped her arms over Carmilla's shoulders. Carmilla responded by tugging Laura closer and holding her waist with both hands. They met eyes and held each other's gaze for a brief moment before Laura looked down, her forehead falling to Carmilla's shoulder.

She was smiling and shaking her head to herself. Carmilla asked quietly,

"What's so funny?"

Laura scoffed, "Truth or lie?"

Carnilla responded quickly, "Now, would I have asked if I wanted a lie?" 

The two laughed and Laura was quiet for a bit, before piecing together the words,

"It's just that this whole thing seems kind of, I don't know, perfect." She shrugged her shoulders and took in a breath before continuing, "And, I think, a small part of me wants it to not be fake."

Carmilla was so shocked at the girl's confession that the two of them stopped moving suddenly. Laura remained quiet, hoping for a response from Carmilla. The silence was deafening, and the blood was pounding in Laura's ears. Her feet were tingling like she was about to take off running and her heart was beating a mile a minute. She was thinking couldn't stand the quiet a second longer when Carmilla whispered back,

"Who says that it has to be?"

"Wait, what?" Laura pulled back from Carmilla, who cleared her throat

"Hey, camera person? This photo shoot is over for now." Carmilla's voice slipped back into her usual cold tone that Laura definitely hadn't missed. Jayden began zipping up their gear and mumbled a goodbye when they saw the look Carmilla gave them.

"Carm, what do you mean?" Laura's eyes were wide, and Carmilla answered

"Follow me, creampuff." Carmilla started to turn and walk but Laura grabbed her arm.

-

"Okay, I think you have some explaining to do Carmilla." Laura stood with her arms crossed, her face scrunched up as if someone had played a particularly bad joke on her

"I felt like my statement was fairly transparent." Carmilla raised an eyebrow, "It was more of a question really." 

Laura scoffed, "Oh like you really meant it! Or any of that, it was all a clever scheme that just went on for too long, and joking about something like that is a very- well- not nice thing to do to someone Carmilla!"

"Why would I joke about something like that Laura?" Carmilla's sarcastic edge was nowhere to be found, and her arm briefly pulled closer to herself, as if she was trying to keep from reaching out

"Oh, you want me to tell you why? Fine, we can list the reasons." Something hardened behind Laura's eyes that Carmilla had never seen, and she felt something inside her shake, "I'm too nosy, and I'm annoying. I'm so goddamned stubborn and I push too hard and I never know when something is enough, or if it's too much. Not to mention the whole 'unattractiveness' thing, because that's definitely not helping my case in the slightest."

Carmilla felt whatever was shaken loose begin to break when she heard Laura's voice crack and saw the tears begin to well up in the girl's eyes,

"I was naïve and stupid to think this was something that could work. Believe me I was angry, so angry at you when you signed me up for the date, but something in you changed and I just felt it click." Laura was sobbing now, and Carmilla stood up and before she knew it, she was face to face with Laura, "I swear I felt it click, Carm. And now I'm just crying in your apartment because I decided to play this stupid game longer than we should have."

Carmilla brought her hands up to Laura's face and wiped away the girl's tears with her thumbs. Laura was about to say something else when Carmilla shushed her. Taking in a deep breath, she rested her forehead against Laura's and spoke quietly,

"You aren't nosy, you're hungry for knowledge and to learn and you're never happy with what you have. There's always more to a story, and I know that you'll get it one way or another."

Carmilla lifted her head to give Laura a kiss on her forehead before resting back like they were before,

"You aren't annoying. You're clever, and funny, and your laughter is infectious, and I've smiled more in these weeks than I have in years." 

Carmilla kissed Laura on the tip of her nose, before continuing,

"You're not stubborn, you're passionate, and alive, and when you want something, you go get it, and don't let anything get in your way."

This time she kissed one of Laura's cheeks, tasting the tears from before and she felt that loose part shake further apart. 

Laura was in absolute shock, the beautiful words, and soft touches, and the close proximity of Carmilla to her lips becoming increasingly relevant were sending her head swimming. She felt heat blooming in her chest every time that Carmilla took the words that were her deepest fears and flaws and kissed them into such gorgeous things. Carmilla could try everyday for the rest of her life to kiss away her pain and Laura would let her every time.

"And when you push, sometimes it is too hard, but you have to push too hard, Laura. You have to break down walls, and crash and burn to know how strong you are. And you are, so strong." She kissed the other cheek and Laura whined in the back of her throat

"And my God, Laura. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever met in my life. From every piece of your perfect hair, to your little painted toenails. Your smile makes my heart beat a mile a minute, Laura. You're perfect to me in every way, now, and whatever happens down the road."

Laura took in a shuddering breath, which seemed to be the first one in forever, and she crashed her lips to Carmilla's.

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the split in chapters was at "who says it has to be" and i just kinda felt eeehh about dropping it there. so yea!! here it is, and there will be one more plotty ish chapter, and maybe an epilogue or summ


	6. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy ending!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry I've been mia for so long guys! But I finally got this typed up and beta'd so this is the end! I hope you all enjoy.

Carmilla flopped onto her stomach and blindly groped for her ringing phone on her nightstand. When she found it, she hit the answer button and was met with a small, sleepy voice on the other end,

“Happy 5 months baby.” 

Carmilla blushed at the nickname. While she was more than doting with the pastry-related names, anytime Laura used one towards her made something inside her flutter in an oh-so-good way.

“It’s already been 5 months? How did you manage to tie down such a wild and free spirit like me here, cupcake?” Carmilla’s voice was raspy and quiet and she could practically feel Laura’s deep breath from the other end of the line.

“Hmm, maybe it has something to do with your anniversary present tonight?” 

Carmilla smiled, “Oh, and what might my present be?”

“Hmm, it just so happens to be a n-” Laura stopped, “Oh my gosh, you took advantage of my sleepiness, you loser!”

Carmilla laughed on the other end of the line and Laura couldn’t help but sigh contentedly. 

In all honesty, the last 5 months have probably been the best she’d had in awhile. Carmilla was caring, and considerate, also funny as all get out and drop-dead gorgeous. Like, what more could a girl need?

“So what time am I picking you up tonight?” Carmilla drawled slowly

“Around 7ish? I still have a paper to finish before term ends and I want to have as much time to spend with you tonight as I can.”

Carmilla hummed quietly before responding, “What time is it now?”

“I’m not going to tell you that because you’ll hang up on me.”

“It’s before 8:00 then.”

“Yes ma’am it is. But get your ass in gear! You only get your 5 month anniversary once.”

“This is very true, I’ll get up.” Carmilla paused, “After another few hours of sleep.”

Laura laughed at how predictable her girlfriend could be, “Okay then, go back to sleep. But I expect you here no later than 7:30, understood?”

“10-4.”

The line went dead.

Carmilla glanced over to her window, the light just barely illuminating the room. She glanced over to her nightstand at the extra ring of keys that sat there. She debated throwing them into a kitchen drawer and forgetting she had them made for about the millionth time that week. 

She rolled over in her bed to get comfortable again, but her mind was going to quickly now to fall back to sleep. 

She was sure that she wanted to give them to Laura when she had the keys made. She had been sure weeks ago that she wanted to give them to the girl who she had grown so very fond of. So much so, she was even throwing around the word love in her head. Only so often though. Just to see how it felt. (It felt really really great).

Carmilla sighed, accepting that she wouldn’t be getting any more sleep that morning so she reluctantly threw off her covers and pulled herself out of bed. When she made it to the kitchen, she saw the microwave read 7:24 and she rolled her eyes.

After making a quick breakfast she decided to go out and look at possible gifts in case she chickened out on the whole “Hey, move in with me?” thing.

-

“I don’t know Perry, is it too cheesy?” Laura groaned from a prone position on her unmade bed,

“Well, it’s cheesy, but you said it was something similar to what you said the day you admitted your feelings, right?” Perry was trying her best to keep Laura from spontaneously combusting due to the stress she’s put herself under for tonight. 

“Yea, but tonight has to be perfect Perr. I’m basically telling her that I love her and that's like major scary. Plus, the whole key-necklace thing is way overdone anyway.” Laura sighed even heavier,

“Laura, enough with the moping. You’re going to give the necklace to Carmilla, and she’s going to love it because she loves you. Now get up, and get ready. It’s already 2:00 and you’re nowhere near ready for your date.”

Laura leaned up in a dramatic fashion, her voice full of despair,

“But Perry what if she doesn’t love me? What if I scare her away? She always like, pauses and shies away when I call her babe or baby, and she’s been really distant lately and freezes up anytime I vaguely suggest a future together. Nothing even serious though! Like I mention Thanksgiving and she like totally zones out for a few seconds. And I only talked about it in passing because I told her she had to try my Dad’s mashed potatoes!”

“Communication, Laura. Now get up.” Perry clapped her hands and then left the room, leaving Laura to her own devices.

-

Laura heard her phone ring and she reached across her desk to grab it. On the lockscreen, a picture of Carmilla sleeping in her bed, her hair spread in every which way. Her lips were slightly parted and her shoulders were bare. Laura knew everything else was too, but the sheet pulled up over her chest kept that secret between them. She remembered the day she taken that picture and felt butterflies erupt in her stomach remembering that night with Carmilla and the following morning. 

She bit her lip before answering, “Hey sweetheart! What’s up?”

“Come downstairs. I’ve got a surprise for you.”

“Okay, be down in a second.”

The line went dead. Laura quickly reviewed herself in the mirror before grabbing her bag (she double and triple checked that the James Avery box was in fact in there). She was wearing a tight blue dress and some plain black heels. She didn’t look jaw-dropping, but she cleaned up pretty well, if she did say so herself.

-

Carmilla was leaning up against the side of a black Charger when Laura walked out of her dorm. She was wearing a white button up with a tie, some slacks and a suit coat to go with it. She quickly stood up and straightened her tie when she saw Laura and a large grin crossed over her face,

“Hey.” Carmilla said, a dopey grin on her face,

“Why do you look at me like that?”

“Like what?”

Laura rolled her eyes, “Like I’m a star.”

“You do look like a star, a vision in blue.” Carmilla said smoothly, sidling up to Laura, bringing her hand to rest comfortably at the girl’s waist

“Oh I do?” Laura asked and allowed Carmilla to pull their bodies flush together,

Carmilla pulled a piece of hair from in front of Laura’s face and pushed it behind her ear, “And you are.”

Laura blushed and looked down, her hands resting on Carmilla’s chest, “You’re so terrible, you know.”

“Mmhm, but you love it.” Carmilla hummed

Laura looked up, eyes glancing at Carmilla’s lips before answering, “Absolutely.”

Carmilla leaned in for a kiss but Laura abruptly pressed a finger to her girlfriend’s lips,

“No kissing! I just put on lipstick.” 

Carmilla pouted and Laura leaned closer, bumping her nose against Carmilla’s,

“I don’t exactly mind the lipstick, if you can recall.” Carmilla whispered and Laura laughed before replying,

“It’s too early to mess it up.” Laura pulled away from Carmilla’s embrace and then asks, “So were you just leaning on this car, or do we get to ride in style?”

“No driving yet, we walk first. But before we go, I have something for you.” Carmilla nearly skipped to the car. She opened the door and pulled out a bouquet of white lilies,

“Carm, these are gorgeous! But, um, we’re about to leave, what am I supposed to do with them?”

Carmilla paused, “Oh. I never thought of that, I just knew that it was something that you did.” Her face dropped and Laura grabbed the flowers from her hands.

“I love them, and I can’t wait to put them in water when I get home tonight.” Carmilla smiled again, “So, maybe we can put them in the car until we get back.”

“Yeah.” Laura smiled and Carmilla put the flowers back into the car for her,

“Okay, so are you ready to go?”

“As I’ll ever be.” Laura pulled her arm through Carmilla’s and let Carmilla lead them down the sidewalk.

-

When they had been seated at the restaurant, which was conveniently on the same block as Laura’s dorm, Carmilla’s nerves really began to set in. She hadn’t been able to find anything that felt as right as the keys for Laura and she took that as a sign that it was the right thing to do.

She glanced up from her fidgeting hands to see Laura peering at her over her wine glass,

“Something on your mind?” Laura asked easily, setting the glass down on the table

“You could say that I guess, yea.” Carmilla was chewing on the inside of her cheek and Laura reached across the table to grab her hand. 

Once Laura’s hand grasped her’s tightly, and she locked eyes with her girlfriend. Laura’s eyes were crinkled with her smile and Carmilla felt every ounce of anxiety about the keys, asking Laura to move in, telling Laura that she loved her, melt away.

“Is it about the gifts?” 

Carmilla nodded, “Yea, actually.”

“Do you want to do them now and just get them over with?” Laura asked

Carmilla sighed and smiled even bigger, “Yea.”

“Okay. I’ll go first.” Laura blew out a breath and then reached for her bag. She pulled out a jewelry box and Carmilla’s breath caught in her throat. Laura most have noticed this and said quickly, “I’m not asking you to marry me, I promise.”

Carmilla eased up, and then asked, “What clever pun did you involve in my gift this time then?”

Laura smiled and passed the box to Carmilla. When she opened it, she was greeted with a small silver key on a chain. It was fairly plain, but also gorgeous in it’s own right, and Carmilla smiled even bigger, if that was possible.

“It’s called the ‘key to my heart’, which is kind of cheesy I know, but I thought it fit us. Whenever I’m with you Carm, everything just makes sense, like I’ve waited my whole life to meet you. And I know it’s hard sometimes, and that we fight, and that we might not always agree on things, but when we fight, we make up. We make it work, and that’s why we work. That’s why our love works. It clicks. We click, like a key in a lock Carm.” Laura finished with a deep breath and Carmilla was silent

Carmilla was frozen in her seat. Laura had told her that she loves her. Laura loves her. 

But she couldn’t fucking move, or tell Laura that she loves her back, or do anything. So she just stared at Laura with a blank stare and she watched Laura’s face morph from a loving gaze to a near horrified grimace.

“Unless I totally misread the whole situation, and you were planning on breaking up with me tonight, which is pretty awkward. I have to say that you’re entitled to being your own person and making your own decisions, but it’s a really shitty thing to do to dump someone on a milestone date.”

Laura looked ready to run, her jaw quivering ever so slightly and tears were welling up in her eyes. 

Carmilla finally spoke, “I love you too.”

And the tears that Laura had been holding back fell.

-

“I cannot believe we are spending our date in the bathroom of some restaurant.” Laura was wiping her mascara in the mirror and Carmilla leaned against the counter, smiling at Laura.

“Well, at least it’s not like, a gas station bathroom or something.” Carmilla said

Laura laughed loudly, “I guess you’re right.”

“Also, while we’re in here, I want to give you my present.” Carmilla began digging around in her pocket and Laura turned to her

“You sure you want to do this here?” 

Carmilla shrugged, “I’m too nervous to do it with all those people out there.”

She pulled the keys out of her pocket and held them out on a finger in front of Laura.

“Carm, why are you handing me your keys?”

“They aren’t mine, they’re yours.” Carmilla paused, “I know that you like living in your dorm, and that you have lots of friends there, so you don’t have to move in or anything like that. But now you have your own keys to the place, so you can come over any time you want and stay as long as you’d like.”

“You want me to move in?” Laura smiled at Carmilla and the dark haired girl glanced down, 

“Yea, that was the plan. But you don’t have to if you don’t want to. Small steps, you know?”

Laura nearly leaped into Carmilla’s arms and Carmilla wrapped her arms tightly around Laura’s waist, holding her close. 

“Of course I’ll move in with you, you goof.” Laura was looking at Carmilla now, but her arms were still around her girlfriend’s shoulders,

“Really?” Carmilla’s face broke into a dopey grin

“Yes, really.” 

-

They were both making it back to Laura’s dorm when Carmilla asked, 

“So you have two options now, we can go finish the date I had planned, or we can go back to our place and you can finally let me ruin that lipstick.”

Laura fiddled with the lapels of Carmilla’s suit coat, “I quite like that second one.” 

Carmilla smirked and unlocked the car, “Then after you.”

-

Happy. That’s what she felt. Happy, and completely in love. 

Laura shifted in Carmilla’s arms, mumbling words in her sleep and Carmilla sighed. A small content smile pulled across her face and she held Laura tighter. Slowly her eyes closed again and the smile never left her face. 

-

When she woke up again, her arms were empty and the sheets around her were cold. She sat up drowsily and rubbed her eyes. Adjusting to the light of the room, she saw that Laura’s clothes were still scattered around the floor, so she knew that Laura hadn’t left early that morning. She stood up and threw on an old t-shirt and some clean underwear before leaving the bedroom to look for Laura.

She found the girl in the kitchen cooking french toast for breakfast in nothing but Carmilla’s button up shirt from last night. Carmilla came up behind Laura and wrapped her arms around her waist. She brushed her nose against the girl’s hairline before planting a few small kisses down Laura’s neck,

“Hmmm, Carm if you keep that up this french toast is going to burn.”

Carmilla flipped Laura around, pressing her to the counter with her hips. She cupped Laura’s face with her hand and gently ran her thumb across Laura’s cheek,

“Let the world burn, I’ve got everything I need right here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is the necklace that Laura got for Carm:   
> http://haley2daletter.tumblr.com/post/134404310042/fic-stuff#  
> After this I have a small 4 shot with celebrity!carmilla and ldr planned that you guys will have to look out for!

**Author's Note:**

> Updates will be every tuesday night/wednesday early morning, or at least try to be!


End file.
